Crusie Ship Packages

It has been a busy few days and we are about half way through with 28 of the 58 ships visiting Tauranga completed so far. So this is a bit of a catch up for me.

17th January 2009:
Two ships were in port this day. The Volendam and the Millenium. It was pretty busy and in no time the van was full with a family from Auzy, Colin (dad), Robin(Mum), Luke, Joel, Breanne and Keely and two friends from America Shelly and Claire. As our name says it is all about Adventure in the Bay of Plenty and in no time we had the days activities planned and we were heading over to Rotorua. First stop Agroventures. Colin, Luke and Joel decided to give the jet boats ago, Breanne and Keely raced each other on the Shweeb and Robin was in charge of the photos. Shelly and Claire chose the jet boats as well. Next Dad and the boys were getting ready for the Swoop, Breanne and Keely were off to the Free Fall (mum was in charge of the photos) and Shelly and Claire had a bit of catching up to do back in America and were surfing the net. Soon we were heading off to Raftabout Rafting Tours on the Kaituna River. It had been Shelly's idea to do some rafting and no-one needed any convincing. About a 20 minute drive from Rotorua Raftabout provides a very professional, safe and fun adventure. The family from Auzy were in one raft while the girls from America plus a few ring ins were in the other. This time I was in charge of the photos because Robin was rearing to take on the highest commercially rafted waterfall in the world at 7m's. After the necessary safety and technique briefings they disappeared with their rafts over farmland to the launching ramp just down the hill. I jumped into the courtesy coach and was taken to all the best photo spots with Barry from Adventure Photography. The 7m waterfall was the winner on the day taking a few prisoners under its turbulent waters but spitting them up again before too long. Keely was too young to go down the waterfall but made up for it by riding up front shotgun style on the surfing sections of the river. Everyone was feeling a bit hungry so we returned to Rotorua for a quick feed. Now you cannot go to Rotorua without seeing some of the geothermal activity and I just happen to know of a couple of places that the big bus tours don't take people. (and its free) by now it was getting late as Shelly and Claire's boarding time was 5.30pm so we had to head back to Tauranga. I also had an evening tour with another group from Auzy wanting to go to the Mitai Village for a Maori Concert and Hangi Meal. I could wright on forever about this trip but as they say a picture says a thousand words so I have put on as many as I could. On a passing note for my Auzy friends "GO THE WARRIORS"

The Afternoon of the 17th Jan 2009:
After dropping Colin and his Family, Shelly and Claire back at the Port I was off again with another family from Australia. Their ship wasn't leaving Port until around midnight and although just coming back from Rotorua they wanted to head back to see the Mitai Village Maori Show. After picking up a few cold ones for them from the liquor store we were off. Sharon, Leroy, Paula, Mark, Brendon and Indy (after the racing cars) were from a small town in Auzy that hadn't seen much rain for quite a while so our green country side was quite refreshing. As Auzys and Kiwis do we talked about sport, politics, history and culture until we arrived at Mitai. I dropped them off for the 2hr show and headed into town for something to eat and catchup on some paper work. About 9.30 I picked them up again and returned them to the ship. A long busy day and I hope they all enjoyed it as much as I did.

18th Jan 2009
Things started off a bit slow this day and after speaking with Tim who owns The Enterprise (the boat we use for some of our tours) who told me there were TV cameras everywhere for the hydroplane etc boat races I shot over to Tauranga a put my flag up on his boat hoping to get a bit of exposure. don't know if it worked or no yet. Not long had a being there Shelly from the I- Site Mt Maunganui called me saying their were four off the boat wanting to go to Kiwi 360 and Comvita in Te Puke. Back I went and waiting for me was Lisa, Genya, Julie who were dances off the boat and their friend Catherine. AS in all our tours I took them around the Mount and told them a bit of the local history and culture of the area and showed them all the best sights on our way out to Te Puke about 1/2 hour drive away. We soon arrived at Kiwi 360 and after booking the guided tour they browsed around the souvenir shop, sampled some kiwifruit, wine, liquor etc. The manager offered me a free tour which I gladly accepted. The tour takes you around the orchard explaining in detail the kiwifruit industry and how it came about and why it became so successful in New Zealand after originally being imported from China (Chinese Gooseberry).
Once finished we piled back in the van and went to Comvita, specialists in natural health care with a bee focus. they had a look around for a while and before long it was time to head back but not before taking the back we went to the top of Papamoa Hills to show them the amazing panoramic views of The Bay of Plenty.

19th Jan 2009
Today I had Steve and Patricia from America and Stu and Joy from Australia. They had been to the I-Site and decided to go white water rafting. So it was back to Raftabout. We went via Pyes Pa and as being the adventurous type people I wanted to show them a few of the attractions. Unfortunately due to some road works we got a bit delayed and after grabbing something to eat we were off to Raftabout headquarters. On arrival we were greeted as usual by the friendly staff and because there was room on the raft Blair offered me a free ride which I happily accepted. Again after the prelims of safety and technique we were off down the river. There was one other raft, named Team China and from the start you could tell there was going to be some mischief on the water. Alfie our fantastic guide had us maneuvering the raft pretty well and except for a few words to our American friends to paddle harder we had it mastered. To be fair though having an Auzy and a Kiwi on the same boat probably isn't the best thing. Stu was probably trying to paddle harder than me and I know I was paddling hard to make sure Stu wasn't getting the upper hand. I guess the most memorable moment was looking back after going down the 7m water fall and our guide Alfie was nowhere to be seen. I think the photo tells the story. Again it is one of those activities that is hard to put down in words and I am made about water sports/activities so I just had an amazing time. Steve and Patricia put on par with skydiving. Again the pictures tell the story. Afterwards we look at the photos taken by Barry and it was decided to show them a bit of geothermal activity back in Rotorua. Again we are able to take them to the places where the crowds don't go so they get to get up close and spend as much time as they want. But again the day is only so long and we had to head back to Tauranga after stopping off at a kiwifruit orchard for Steve. We were even able to make this an adventure by jumping a gate to a private farm to get a photo. No harm was done and we were soon back at the port.

School Trip

February last year I was involved in an educational trip with Gisborne Intermediate. Now that I have got my head around blogger I thought I would fill you on on last years trip as they have contacted me again this year for more of the same, and man do I hope it's more of the same. For those of you who don't know, Gisborne is a city of about 40,000 on the East Coast of New Zealand. (My home town) Anyway Brendan Hart (Harty), one of the teachers contacted me and asked if I was interested, and of course, I was. There were two groups of around 60 children each. One group was going to Otoi and the other group to Mahia. First I was going to Otoi which can be best described as a very small rural community. Amazing landscape with steep gullies, beautiful lakes and rivers. On our arrival I helped out with the setting up of camp and general supervision of the children aged from 11-13. The children were housed in tents while the adults were in the hall. After rubber tubing down the nearby rivers rapids and a few games in the paddocks it was time for dinner, followed by some card games. Soon it was bed time but Harty and I stayed up for a while chatting. When I decided to hit the sack one of the parents, who I will not name was snoring away and the more I tried to ignore it the worse so I packed up the sleeping bag and curled up in the back seat of my van. The next day our activities consisted of kayaking, biking and another ride down the river on tyre tubes. Not far from camp was a small, safe lake on private farm land that we had permission to use. It was ideal as the kids could be supervised form the shore if need be although saying that if I was not in the water with them a couple of parents and teachers were. Harty took another group riding over the country roads and when he returned they swapped around. It was a great day with beautiful weather. The next morning I packed up and headed to Mahia. (approx 1 hour drive) Mahia is another fantastic spot. Situated on a peninsular it is spoilt with beaches ranging from golden sand to rocky coast, clean waters and some of the best surf, fishing and diving in the country. The second group was staying at the motor camp and on my arrival we planned the days activities and off we went. Again I was in control of the kayaking with the help of one of the parents while a couple of the teachers, including the principal who had come to see how things were going went on a bike ride.
At the time Mahia was the home of a dolphin called Moko. He/she would turn up out of the blue and had in the past played with swimmers. We were onto our second group when I heard a whole lot of excited kids and I turned to notice Moko swimming amongst them as did all the kids in the kayaks. They all headed into shore while I decided to kayak over to the group. Moko soon noticed me and swam over and began nudging the back of my kayak. I took this as meaning he wanted to have a race so off I went closely followed by Moko. I managed about 30 meters before I needed a rest but Moko got in behind and started nudging me again so off I went heading back towards the group in the water. Someone threw a ball into the water and Moko took it and didn't return it. Grant to the rescue, or so I thought. Moko would bring the ball over to me but just as I was within reaching range he would take it away again. I decided to throw him my water pump which was a great idea to get the ball back but now I couldn't get my pump. Eventually Moko came right up to the kayak with the pump on his nose and gave it back. Let me pat him on the nose for a while before he heard the spalsh of the ball again so we had to do it all over again. Moko was like a pet dog in the water, totally superior in every way. It is one of those experience you just can not describe or explain. Even writing this almost 12 months I still get goose bumps. Was I happy to get asked to go again this year, HELL YES. Nature being nature though Moko may not be there this time but hey, I love what I do and Moko was just icing on the cake.

Cruise Ship Day

7th of January and the Sun Princess was coming to Tauranga. It was a beautiful sunny day and the passengers were soon piling onto the port and making their way to the I-Site up the road. Peter, Leanne and their young children Angus and Simone from Australia were keen to go over to Rotorua and go on the Luge and Zorb. We piled into the van and off we went. The trip from Tauranga to Rotorua takes approx 1 hour and once there we decided to go up the gondala to the luge. It was pretty busy with a que snaking from the checkout to the entrance. I dropped them off and arranged to come and pick them up in a couple of hours. I picked them up around 2.30pm and they all had huge smiles on their faces with Angus claiming the king of the mountain title although there was plenty of debate. Next stop the Zorb. The kids decided on the wet option with Peter and Leanne going for the dry option. They decided to wach a few people do it first and Peter changed his mind and went for the wet option but he couldn't convince Leanne to do the same. I was put n charge of the camera so I hope the photos came out alright. After the Zorb we went and got a small bite to eat and it was time to head back to Tauranga. Another group very satisfied and who appreciated the small groups we specialise in. Next ship I may have to stay at the I-Site a little bit linger as there were a couple of other groups interested in our Adventure Options however I had already left. The van only seats eight passengers though so if you are coming to Tauranga get to the I-Site fast or email at enquiries@adventurebop.co.nz

Plummers Point Paradise

January the 3rd and another group interested in Plummers Point kayak adventure. Julie had contacted me by email and subsequently phone and we were looking at the Mount Maunganui Marvel however the tides were not suitable and we decided on Plummers Point. The weather forecast was not looking good the day before so it was all on standby. The morning of the 3rd and the day was looking alright, however there was a large low coming up from the south but thanks to the met service I called Julie and said I thought we wold be alright. She was keen and her niece and nephew who were over on holiday from England were heading back on Monday so she thought it would be good to give them a day off before flying back. We arranged to met at Plummers Point at approx 11.30 after her husband Jes had finished work. I got there a bit earlier and set everything up to save time hoping to beat the rain heading our way. Julie, Jes, their son Daniel and Emma and Mike (niece/nephew) arrived soon after and off we set. We had all packed lunch and our plan was to head over to Motuhoe Island, explore the coastline, have a meal and then head back. Half way to Motuhoe Emma had spotted a bird in the water and was unsure what it was. After some confusion on distance and direction of this creature I spotted a blue penguin bobbing up in down in the water. Daniel debated the issue somewhat as he didn't think it was cold enough for penguins. I think I convinced him. The tide was high and it gave us an opportunity to get up close to Motuhoe shoreline and negotiate a few of the overhanging Pohutakawa Trees and also get nice and close to the white sandstone cliffs. A shout went up as a kahawai jumped out of the water nearby as we headed to our picnic spot. We found a nice little beach to have lunch and I explained a little about the local history of the area. Looking south there was the ominous sign of the predicted rain hanging over the Kaimai ranges so we quickly packed up a headed back. Daniel was feeling the pressure and his dad was having to do all the work. (you can reply to this Daniel and give your version of events) I decided to give them a hand and gave them a bit of tow. Three quarters of the way back and we got hit by heavy rain but the good new was it was gone as quick as it came and the kayak up the inlet was fine and calm and we were able to get packed up while staying relatively dry.

Rotorua Adventure

It was January the 2nd and I was off to Rotorua to pick up Louise and Daniel who were a couple of Auzys on their honey . They had received a voucher from Red Balloon for our Rotorua Adventure which includes a choice of a full days kayaking or mountain biking or a combination of both. They chose the combo so we started with a lovely kayak on Lake Tarawera. A dormant volcano that last erupted in 1886 dominates the landscape with the shore line covered in native bush. The weather was threatening to open up and douse us with torrential rain but the weather gods were on our side and other than a couple of light showers we managed to stay dry and warm. Approximately 9 kms from our starting point our the natural hot pools so we headed in that direction. It meant we would have a 16km kayak and then have to get on the bikes or miss the ride all together. We decided to play it by ear and after a short stop and a snack at one of the beaches they decided they really wanted to go for a ride as well so we turned around and headed back to the van. When we got back we had lunch on the beach and packed up and headed for the mountain bike trails. Still no rain but the sky above was looking darker by the minute. We got set up and headed off into the Whakarewarewa forest and then the rain came. We stopped under the natural shelter of one of the many trees and assessed the situation. We took a photo while we were still dry and headed deeper into the forest hoping g we would have some cover from the trees. The trails were pretty wet but it was still a lot of fun. We rode for approx an hour and with the rain still falling so we decided to call it a day